# Is "The Business" by Iain Banks a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Business by Iain Banks (Little, Brown, 1999) is identified by: Little, Brown UK hardcover, 393 pages, jacket art by Peter Brown. UK Little, Brown hardcover (1999) is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Little, Brown UK hardcover, 393 pages, jacket art by Peter Brown
- Copyright page states First published in Great Britain in 1999 by Little, Brown and Company, with no statement of a later impression
- Priced, unclipped dust jacket
- ISBN 0316648442
- Publisher imprint reads Little, Brown
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Iain Banks |
| Publisher | Little, Brown |
| Year | 1999 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Little, Brown UK hardcover, 393 pages, jacket art by Peter Brown |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Little, Brown UK hardcover, 393 pages, jacket art by Peter Brown. Copyright page states First published in Great Britain in 1999 by Little, Brown and Company, with no statement of a later impression. Priced, unclipped dust jacket. ISBN 0316648442.

## Is this the true first?
UK Little, Brown hardcover (1999) is the true first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
None notable.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Business* by Iain Banks a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-business
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.